Forensic experts slated to oversee shooting probe

By Jimmy Chuang / STAFF REPORTER

State Public Prosecutor-General Lu Jen-fa (盧仁發) said yesterday that prosecutors will invite Henry Lee (李昌鈺) and Shih Tai-ping (石台平) to Taiwan to join a special task force and lead the team's investigation into the March 19 shooting of President Chen Shui-bian (陳水扁) and Vice President Annette Lu (呂秀蓮) in Tainan.

Lee, a world-renowned forensic scientist, and Shih, the former director of the forensic medicine department of the National Police Administration's Criminal Investigation Bureau (CIB), both live in the US.

"They will be taking over and conducting the entire investigation," Lu said at a press conference yesterday afternoon.

"They will have full control and are authorized to invite any other experts whenever neces-sary, domestic or foreign," Lu said, adding that he had spoken with Shih just prior to the news conference.

He said that he had not yet talked to Lee but that he thought Lee would be happy to help.

Meanwhile, the police arrested four people -- Peng Ching-chi (彭青之), Hsu Chien-lung (許健龍), Su Yu-kai (蘇裕凱) and Chang Chien-wei (張健偉) -- for allegedly operating a home factory producing illegal pistols in Taipei County. Police said that when they made the arrest they dis-covered four homemade pistols and 287 homemade bullets. Police said that three of the four pistols were 8mm handguns.

According to the CIB, the four are experts in producing 8mm pistols. Police are looking into the possibility of links between the suspects and the assassination attempt -- in which 8mm rounds were fired at Chen and Lu.